The Love of a Brother
by NBrokenShacklesN
Summary: Because Cor grew up here, and he knows how it works. If he can save his little brother this, then his childhood would be worth it. It's a big brothers job to look after the younger one after all.
1. Chapter 1

**AN:Hi guys, just to say if any of you have tumblr and have seen this on itsthechristiangirl 's blog. It's fine, I'm her. I really hope you enjoy this, if you do, please drop me a review.**

 **Disclaimer: If you recognise it I don't own it.**

Sometimes, Cor thought, Corins anger could get away from him. To be fair his brother was working on it, but punching a diplomat was really not the best way to go about anything. To be sure the diplomat was very provoking, but the correct response to the phrase "The Tisroc, may he live forever, is a very busy man, and must be respected." Was never "Respect? Respect this" followed by a box round the head. Despite how many times said diplomat had already uttered the phrase.

Calormen diplomats were never a pleasure to deal with at the best of times, and when you are currently in Tashbaan, and grossly outnumbered, and a member of your party has just punched said diplomat, they tend to get even worse. Hence the reason Corin was now sitting in a cell. Just like the last time he had been in Tashbaan.

When Cor got out of this mess and dragged his brother back to Anvard, he was going to suggest to his father that Corin be left out of any future trips to Tashbaan. For the sake of his own sanity if nothing else.

"Corin... I say this with all the brotherly love I can possibly summon, you are a _fool_. You are lucky that you are a prince. If a citizen of Tashbaan had done that it would be the last thing they ever did."

"I'm sorry Cor- I know I'm too hot headed. I know there will be consequences for this, and I beg of the Lion that they will only fall on me. I could not bear it if Archenland was to suffer for my mistake."

Cor smiled at his brother through the bars. "You should thank Aslan that the Tisroc is in a forgiving mood. There is no consequence for you, other than having to spend a night in here that is. Since we were always due to leave tomorrow I wore them down to accepting that. I may have been raised a fisherman's boy in Calormen, but I still have a better understanding on how these politics work than many others in our party".

"A night in here? Is that all? That's barely consequence at all."

"Would you prefer longer? I'm sure father wouldn't mind continuing the sentence at home."

"No dear brother, I'm sure one night in here will adequately teach me my lesson."

Cor snickered, Aravis had told him that he sounded like Bree when he did that. He wasn't sure how to take that. "Well, I was told that it gets quite cold down here at night, so I brought you a change of warmer cloths. Had me your other ones quickly and I'll take them with me back up. If I'm here too much longer the guard will think I'm freeing you or something equally foolish."

"Of course brother, but you'll have to give me those ones first."

As Cor was walking away from the cell, hearing Corin murmuring to himself that the punishment was awfully lenient for Calormen, he couldn't help but smile. He had never been more grateful that Corin hadn't been listening in the lecture that they had been given about Calormen before they came.

The punishment for striking a member of the Tisrocs court. Death for the lower class and eighty lashes for those of higher class. No matter if they were a prince or not. Well, Corin had never been whipped in his life; Cor knew that shocks like that could have a terrible effect on the body. Himself on the other hand. Well, he had Corin were identical twins after all. The only reasons anyone in Calormen could tell them apart were their clothes and personalities. He had the clothes, and it was quite easy to act like Corin.

He would spare his brother all the pain he could in life. He was older after all. If only by twenty minutes.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hello, I got a few reviews asking me to do some follow up chapters, so I thought well, why not. Here you go do review if you like this. I will probably at some point do a chapter for Lune finding out, and maybe Aravis, and Corin. But it might not be for a while, depending on my schedule. I'm going to leave it in the completed section though, since it can stop at any of these chapters. It's more a series of oneshots in the same universe than a story.**

 **Disclaimer: If you recognize it I don't own it.**

The ride back to Anvard was not very comfortable for Cor. Crossing the dessert was always uncomfortable, with the heat of the sand and sun, the winds that would occasionally spring up and throw sand into the face of any rider.

It was made more uncomfortable by the throbbing of the marks on his back. The sweat from the heat was sticking his shirt to his back, and it stung when it stuck to the whip marks. It was supposed to be only eighty lashes, but Cor had gone acting like Corin, and by the end it was more like a hundred. The pain of course wasn't helped by the fact that as they were saddling up to leave Tashbaan Corin had come up and clapped him on the back in thanks for wearing down his sentence. Cor was sure that had reopened one of the lashes.

Lord Dar, who had travelled with them, had noticed his flinch at the contact, and by the way he was constantly glancing at Cor, he had realised why. Cor was thankful that Dar had set a slower pace that was easier his back, he wasn't sure if he could have kept up the act if he had to ride fast. It was hard enough to keep up the act already, he hadn't realised how far his acting abilities had decayed since he had been restored by Aslans grace to Archenland.

At last they reached the winding arrow, and members of the party dismounted to refill their water skins. Somewhat downstream Corin had plunged into the river, and was calling for Cor to join him. It would be suspicious for Cor to refuse at this point. But he couldn't remove his shirt or Corin would notice the lashes. There was no point is sparing his brother the physical pain of the lashing, but making him feel emotional pain in the knowledge that his brother had borne the punishment in his place. His brother, like their mother felt things deeply; sometimes too much so.

Cor sometimes felt left out when he would talk, he had been taught to hide his emotions as a child, and he couldn't be as outspoken or as genuine as Corin. When he first arrived in Archenland he thought that meant he was broken. That he was too much Shasta to ever fit in. Fortunately that mindset had been stamped out fairly quickly. There were only so many times Aravis could tell him he was just being stupid, and honestly he fit in much more than she ever would, before he began to believe it. Of course he was just as quick to reassure her that she belonged too.

Cor decided to go in with his top still on, suspicious yes, but hopefully not to Corin, and the other members of the party would likely notice by his actions that he didn't want Corin to know. Besides, before too long his back would have healed, and after that he could play any scars off as an old injury from his youth in Calormen.

Before too long the party had remounted on the other side of the river and they were on their way to stay with the hermit for the night, or rather to camp near the hermit and return to Anvard tomorrow. Cor was rather looking forward to seeing him again. It had been a good few years since he had last been there and was complaining about having to be educated.

When the party drew to a halt Cor continued on till he came to the high hedge, with a gate, and another opposite it. He remembered arriving from Calormen tired and weak, and having to run on again through the other gate. Well he could not deny he was somewhat weak now, but not nearly so much as back then.

The hermit was there to greet him. "It has been quite a while since I have seen you face my Prince."

"Yes sir, it is an honour to see yours again."

The hermit smiled "come in my son, your injuries will need tending to before I send you back to your camp. By the lion, first the Lady Aravis, now yourself, perhaps for once a member of your party could return from Tashbaan uninjured."

"Sorry for intruding upon you solitude sir."

"Oh, I'm a hermit. I get a good deal of solitude; I dare say one day will not kill me. Now come on, take off that shirt and sit down."

Cor striped of his red shirt and sat down on the indicated bench. He had deliberately worn a red shirt today just in case one of the lashes re-opened. He had cleaned them the best he could last night, but since he didn't want anyone to know what he had done, it wasn't as thorough as perhaps it should have been.

"Well, few strikes have broken the skin, and only five of those seem to be in danger or scaring. So tell me Prince. Why did you take your brother's place?"

Corin started, of course he had forgotten about the hermit seeing ability. He had probably known before Corin arrived that he would be injured. "I didn't want to see him hurt."

"It was punishment for a misdeed, by all reckoning, he deserved it. He should have taken the punishment himself."

"Perhaps he should have, but I cannot bear to see him suffer so. He... He doesn't know what Tashbaan, what Calormen is really like. I... If it were just the lashes, perhaps I might have stood back and let it happen. I would probably still have taken his place but. It's never just lashes. There's a room, where everyone who is lashed is taken, at least when it isn't public, and... It's horrible. If anyone dies of lashes, they are pilled in the corner- to be burned later. The man who distributes the punishment, he is paid more to insult you, and every time you retort, you are given another strike. I got an extra twenty. Could you imagine what Corin would get? That's what I was sparing him. I would do it again, a thousand times more, to spare him that."

The hermit sighed. "My son, I was all ready to question your wisdom, but you have proved that you have thought about this. Yet remember you cannot shield your brother from everything."

"I know, but I could shield him from that. I may have scars you say but any scar I gain in his defense or protection is well worth it; and it always will be."


End file.
